Saturday, April 16, 2011

Thank you, my friends for your concern!

Firstly, I would like to thank you for your concern and all your advices on my previous post. That being said, I feel that is only right that I do a post on this instead of replying in the comment section. I just cleaned up another mess at my backyard! Another pot of okra seedling has been destroyed. The spring onions pot of container on my previous post which has been attacked, I have since placed 5 overturned pots in the container to cover the soil. Guess what, they stupid cats poo on the containers! Cats, by nature, are supposed to dig in the soil, do their business, then cover it up, right? Well this stupid bunch of cats just do it on containers, on stones and even on the cement walkway, how stupid can they get? Sorry, you cat lovers out there, I'm just letting go of my frustations. You would not want to know what is on my mind if I catch hold of them! Now why are they stupid, because their owner said so!

In reply to all your comments :

Hi Food So Delicious :

I'm glad that I don't have rats in the garden. But then again, I would be able to trap them without feelng guilty to the owners! Plastic containers seems like a good idea, but in order to keep off the cats, the containers need to be very high,at least at a certain height. Would be great if you could keep us updated when you do decide to use these containers, it will be interesting to see how this will help in keeping them away. Thank you!

Hi milka :

Lucky you, to have a big doberman, like a guardian angel to your veggies and plants! I do not have a dog nor intend to get one.

Hi One :

It is stressful! I go to bed thinking about whether will I be seeing buzzing flies around any of my pots in the morning! Talking to the owner will definitely not helped at all, she has promised to look into the matter and it seems that she has not done a single thing about it. Thank you for your suggestions, I will have to try the orange peel method. Will the coffee ground in any way damage the plants, as my plants are all in pots, and when it rains, all the water will flow right into the roots. I need a big tiger, not the poops, to scare the cats away and hopefully the owner will move too, somewhere, far, far, away! And I could not possibly have some words with the cats, they are stupid! The exact words from their owner's mouth "Binatang, mana ada kepala otak!". Yup, she said it loud and clear, over at her kitchen window so that I can hear her!

Hi Bangchik and Kakdah,

Thank you for your technique! It made me smile...! I did that a few times, but then the stupid cats, probably do not understand...!

Hi Diana,

Thank you for your concern and thoughts! The sawtooth coriander can grow to quite a big plant, they need quite a space to grow and very prickly, it will deter them away, but it will be a problem for me to get to my plants, I did cut a few leaves from the sawtooth coriander and scatter them over the pots, no idea whether they works! Most of the young seedlings are destroyed, there's no established plant except one or two. My neighbour did have a patch of soil behind their house, according to the owner, only the mother cat has been toilet trained! I do not understand how can she cook in her kitchen when the cats' poo are directly outside her kitchen window. Imagine the flies that are flying around in her kitchen! Urgh! I did put some leaves around the pot last time, but it doesn't help either. Did not try with serai leaves, as I do not have any serai plants. Will give this a try. Thank you, Diana.

Hi Shidah,

Thank you for your suggestions too. It is difficult to install a wire netting as my garden is at the back lane. I'm staying in an intermediate lot and there's no private entry at the back, it is like a common back lane. I did thought of this before, and it is quite impossible to do, still cracking my head over this!

Yes, I agree with you, talking to the owner doesn't help at all. They have much to learn about being responsible as pets' owner. I always sprayed the area where they poo before, but they still come back if not to the same place, then the next! I have not tried the method with the empty Nescafe pack. It will be sometime when I will need a fresh pack. Can I instead use a teaspoon of Nescafe, dilute it with lots of water and pour this into the pot? Will it damage the plant as they are all in pots. The mineral bottle method sounds interesting. But if they did it during the night, which they usually do, then it won't keep them away! Sigh...!

*************

Thank you, friends, for being there to listen to all my frustations! I was actually thinking of 'closing up' my back garden, and I'm not ashamed to admit that, the thought of doing that and seeing nothing from my kitchen window almost leave me in tears! LOL! So, my next plan is to plant bigger plants like pineapple and serai over at the back and some veggies over at my front porch. I have a small porch and do not have enough of space, so careful planning is required.

I am done with placing stones, sticks and whatever that I can think of to protect the plants, the only solution is I'm hoping that they will move away, even that is out of the question! And I'm not one to hurt an animal, no matter how angry I am, I'll just ignore and be done with them, stupid cats and irresponsible owners. I'll just use my energy into putting my plan to action. In fact, bought two pineapples yesterday, for a start!

Meanwhile, I will try the few methods suggested, until my front porch is ready. Thank you everyone! I really appreciate all your thoughts and suggestions! You are the best! :)

12 comments:

I got another idea! The cats are only focusing on the soil right. You don't have to net around the whole container. Instead using the wires on top of the container (think horizontally not vertically) so the cats can't get their paws to the soil and do their business easily.Seedling can still grow through the wires easily as they are small. But cats can't enter their paws into the pots easily and do digging because they are nets on top of the container. I hope you understand what I am trying to explain. This won't cause you that much money. Does not take time to set up either. You can used something heavy on top so the cats can't move it to reach the soil. You can even recycle old plastik tudung saji that already have holes. Don't worry, there is always a way.

Used coffee ground is good for the plants. They can be obtained from Starbucks or you can ask from the local coffee shop for a favour to save some for you. Do NOT use Nescafe. Used coffee ground is no longer acidic since they have been brewed. Just make sure you do not let the coffee touch the stem. But I do not know if it will deter the cats. I thought the cats may not like the smell. I did some research on deterring cats years ago and someone said tiger poop. Even if it works, I think we will faint first. I also read about the orange peel. I thought no harm for you to try. But I would imagine the orange peel or used coffee ground need to be applied on a regular basis since the smell will disappear after a while. Since they are good for the plants and food for the earthworms, why not?

You did see my titty fruit flower post last year. You mentioned your neighbour's plants had yellow bells. It seem so long ago.

All the best. Hopefully one of the solutions work. I had thrown away all my nettings or I would pass them to you to experiment on Diana's suggestion. I better stop now. Take care.

So sorry to hear that your problem has not solved. Uh that is so stressful. I just remembered there were stray dogs always pee on my gate. I bought some 'powder' from the pet shop and sprinkled around, the dogs hated the smell and never come again. Not sure whether there are such 'powder' for cats?

Hi One,Ha! That is funny! Love your sense of humour! But then, one of that thought did crossed my mind...mmm!Will have to get some used coffee grounds and try this as well. Thank you for the info.Yes, I remember now the titty fruit flower on your earlier post. This plant has since been removed by the owner, I no longer see it anymore. It is really cute actually. Thank you for the kind thoughts on the netting, I will try with one or two pots first, as I do not really have that many plants at the moment, since the problems with the cats, I have cut back on the sowing of other veggies. Thank you, One for your shared ideas! I really appreciate it.

Hi milka,I have heard of the spray but not powder. No idea about that. Thank you for the info.

I think One is right that it better to apply used coffee grounds. I served the diluted nescafe drinks on the soil and grass on the ground where the cats like to poo. Some plants love some acidity hence they didn't die and maybe the cats really didn't like the coffee smell, hence disappeared. Touch wood for me, the cats do not like to spend time in my garden anymore. I wonder if it is because of the serai, misai kucing, basil, pandan and other scented/smelly plants I grow. You can root some serai from the bunch you keep in the fridge for your cooking. Place them in water until roots appear before you plant them in the soil. They grow faster this way.

I think if you can make the cats dislike your garden, they won't come. Someone suggested using a water toy gun to shoot water at them because they dislike getting wet. Another suggested placing cut stems with thorns on the soil to deter them because they won't like the prick when they squat to do their business. The cats are not stupid. They are very smart, hence they know when not to sit on plant parts with thorns!

From Milka's suggestion, I wonder if pet shop owners sell anything that deter cats. I have tried the mineral water bottle method. Actually, I have used a few methods simultaneously, hence now I don't know which one worked in the end.

I know how you feel and I really hope you can solve this problem soon. Good luck!

Hi Autumn Belle,Yes, planting serai is a good idea. Used to plant that before, but not anymore as they take up space in my rather congested garden! Will plant it again, just sowed two pineapples today, hopefully that will deter them away as well! Ha! Ha! My son's very big water toy gun is a permanent resident by the side of my kitchen door, it can shot to a few metres away. Did it scare the cats away, NO!! They ran when shot, of course, but they always come back. Thank you Autumn Belle, really appreciate your suggestions and support!

Hi One,Yes, the cats did it again, today! I just got rid of one more pot of kangkung this evening!!! The remainder one pot, I have transferred it to the front garden! Tomorrow will be a busy day, clearing the front, I have begun to sow more seeds today. I think that I will stick to my plan of planting my veggies over at my front yard and the bigger, prickly plant over at the back. Besides, serai and pineapples, any suggestions? I could even do a rose garden at the back, but then I never had luck with roses!Thank you, One.

Thank you to all of you, for "listening" to my frustations and anger, and for your ideas and suggestions, I know that you have been cracking your heads too to think of a suitable method to overcome this irritating problem. I am deeply touched by your gestures. Thank you!

Hi, just stumbled upon your blog as I browse through some gardening blogs.

Are the cats still bothering your garden? I used to have cats treating my indoor garden as their daily toilet. Someone suggested using eucalyptus oil (or minyak cap kapak) as cats don't like the smell. I've tried it and it worked. But you have to keep applying as the smell wears off after a while. What I did was to put a few drops onto a few small containers and leave them around the area, refilling every few days.

Here's also a link to one gardener's blog who shared about her methods. Maybe you can try it.

About Me

Welcome to my little garden in pots from Selangor, Malaysia. My plants are all in pots and containers, with the exception of my precious Belimbing Tree, which is the only tree that stands on the ground. I love gardening and without having the luxury of gardening grounds, I have to make the most with pots and containers. Do stay awhile and feel free to leave any ideas and experiences on gardening. Have a nice sunny day and Happy Gardening!You may contact me at kitchenflavours@yahoo.com